Hi everyone, I have opened an account with Mouser Electronics, and placed an order for a few current regulating diodes. Unfortunately, I received word from them this morning that any overseas orders must be in excess of $100. (a tad too much for me) Would it be possible for someone in the US to place an order on my behalf? I would be very grateful to anyone who would consider it for me. Thank you. Very best wishes, Have a wonderful, safe, happy, and healthy New Year. Margaret. ----- Original Message ----- From: "S & J Young" <[email protected]> To: "Silver List" <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, December 29, 2002 11:01 AM Subject: CS>Simple Current Limiting CS Generator
> > Fellow CS brewers, > > Not well known is the fact that for about $5 you can easily convert your > constant voltage CS generator (e.g. a three nine-volt battery setup) to one > that limits the current to assure small particle production and prevent > current "run-away". Thus your unit would then function the same as the > better "constant current" commercial units. I will try to describe this in > non-technical terms so many can take advantage of this. > > There is a device called a silicon FET current regulator diode that does the > trick. This is really a small integrated circuit, shaped like a small > rectifier diode, that limits current flow to a set value. The regulator > diodes are small cylinders with about a 1 inch wire coming out of each end > of the cylinder. One end of the cylinder is marked with a band around it. > > The part numbers are the series 1N5283 through 1N5314, with the current > limits in the range of 0.22 ma thru 4.7 ma, respectively. Probably the one > of most interest to us is the 1N5297 that limits the current to 1.0 ma. One > manufacturer is Central Semiconductor Corp. Go to www.centralsemi.com and > search for 1N5297 if you want to see the specifications and a drawing of the > device. > > Using them is super simple. For example, for a three nine-volt battery > system, just cut the wire between the minus terminal of the battery and the > silver electrode. Connect the wire from the battery minus-terminal to the > "banded" regulator diode wire. Connect the wire from the silver electrode > to the other "non-banded" regulator diode wire. One can use 2 small wire > nuts, available at any hardware store, to make the connections, alligator > clips, or solder and tape them. Congratulations - you now have a > sophisticated constant current CS generator! > > When brewing a new batch, the current will start out very small as before -- > a few microamps--depending on water purity. As silver production proceeds, > the current will rise until it reaches the value set into the regulator > diode. Then it will stay constant (e.g. at 1.0 ma for a 1N5297) for the > remainder of the brew time. It is impossible for the current to "run away" > and increase beyond the "set point", even if the electrodes accidently short > together. > > These regulator diodes are rated to a maximum of 100 volts. That means one > could use a higher starting voltage (e.g. 54 volts from six nine-volt > batteries) and reduce the brew time (it will take less time for the current > to reach 1.0 ma). Again, the higher voltage is perfectly safe as the > current cannot "run away" because of the current limiting effect of the > regulator diode. > > These devices are not widely used so they are not available from many > sources such as Radio Shack. One source that sells them is Mouser > Electronics. Go to www.mouser.com and search for the part # 1N5297 and you > will see the information. When I checked recently, they had about 1,500 of > them in stock for a price of $4.29 each. I suppose they have a minimum > order, so it would be a good idea for someone to volunteer to order a batch > of them for those that express an interest in a group buy. (I don't have > time to do this - sorry). > > I believe the use of a 1N5297 along with a few nine-volt batteries is by far > simplest, goof-proof way to make a constant current CS generator. If you > give it a try, please let us know how your results. > > --Steve Young > > > > > > -- > The silver-list is a moderated forum for discussion of colloidal silver. > > Instructions for unsubscribing may be found at: http://silverlist.org > > To post, address your message to: [email protected] > > Silver-list archive: http://escribe.com/health/thesilverlist/index.html > > List maintainer: Mike Devour <[email protected]> --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.426 / Virus Database: 239 - Release Date: 12/2/2002
